QUICK action had to be taken over the weekend after stormy seas breached the dune spit that separates the ocean from the St Francis Canals – once again.
The latest incident was towards the mouth of the Kromme River, whereas the previous breach was further south.
Rocks and sand had been used to fill the breach and the spit was closely monitored should further repairs be necessary.
“The Kouga Municipality has also been fortifying the spit with rocks,” said Kouga Community Services Councillor, Daniel Benson.
He said the emergency work and rock fortifications were temporary solutions while funding was being secured and environmental processes were being finalised for the proposed long-term coastal protection scheme.
“The long-term scheme is being driven by the St Francis Property Owners Association (SFPO). We are grateful to them, as well as to the Kromme Joint River Committee and St Francis Bay Riparian Home Owners Association for their ongoing support,” he said.
The SFPO thanked the municipality for their swift action.
“This is the third breach this year, with the first breach in early April and the second in July,” says SFPO Director, Deon Pienaar, who is also responsible for the implementation of the long term coastal protection scheme. “With more storms and spring high tides on their way there could very easily be more breaches to the extremely vulnerable spit.
“The spit and beach have both been vulnerable for a while now, with no sand nourishing the beach after the sand dunes were stabilised.”
According to Pienaar, the draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the proposed long-term coastal protection scheme was made available for public review during December 2019 and January 2020.
“Good progress has since then been made with additional modelling required to address concerns raised.
“The scheme consists of a series of groynes on St Francis Bay beach, suitably located to protect stretches of vulnerable beach. The groyne construction will be in conjunction with sand being pumped from the Kromme River to a location south of the groynes, in order to nourish the beach, as well as capture the sand.”
